Settlements Security Officers point their guns At Palestinians, taking the law into their hands

By: Madeeha Al-A’raj

The National Bureau for defending land and resisting settlements ( nbprs ) stated in its latest weekly report , that Israeli security official described the Israeli Gov’t as creating a state of security chaos, due to its failure of holding settlement security officers accountable for their violations against the Palestinians in the settlements being responsible for security in the settlements, as their salaries are paid by the Ministry of Security, and the Israeli army provides them with weapons and security vehicles to arrest Palestinians, as well as they affiliated to the Israeli Army that gives them a very wide power to arresting Palestinians, detaining, searching, or confiscating their properties.
Moreover, n 2009, their powers were expanded to work outside the settlements, and to carry out attacks against Palestinians, for example the attacks that took place in the Janiya village in 2019, as a settlement officer named, Jacob Elharar from the “Talmon settlement” stormed it, and opened fire at a Palestinian citizen at a barbershop, and arrested, and handed him over to the army.

Last June, the settlement security officer at the “Yitzhar settlement”, south of Nablus, opened fire at a Palestinian near the settlement. Moreover, the Rotem settlement’s security officers expelled the Palestinian shepherds and dealt violently with Israeli left-wing activists who oppose settlements and the settlers’ practices.

On the other hand, the Local Committee for Planning and Building at the Occupation Municipality in Jerusalem approved a plan to establish a new settlement neighborhood west of Sur Baher, comprising 1,215 housing units, a 28-storey tower, and 11 residential complexes between 7 and 11 floors. In addition, 6 residential plots towards the main road in the neighborhood is provided, 1 section for open public spaces adjacent to buildings with open public space, and 9 plots for public buildings and institutions, which include a post-primary school, primary school, kindergarten and gymnast ium.

For his part, the Occupation Mayor of Jerusalem, Moshe Leon said, “We continue to build in Jerusalem. The construction of the housing complex south of Ramat Rachel is part of the municipality’s policy to increase the supply of housing in the city, by building in vacant areas and enhancing urban renewal.”
In the West Bank, violations and attacks against Palestinian citizens and their lands continue, in clear harmony between settlers and occupation soldiers. Thus settlers have begun to establish a new outpost in the lands of Burin village, southwest of Nablus, as an extension of the “Yitzhar” settlement, which is built on the lands of the village and a number of neighboring villages. Citizens of the village said that in recent days the settlers have installed a number of caravans on a 50 dunums there.
Knowing that the Civil Administration in partnership with the “Samaria Regional Settlement Council” have provided various facilities for settlers to organize an off-road motorcycle championship in the northern West Bank with the aim of encouraging settlement. The competition was held for the first time in the so-called Shahak Industrial Zone near the Shaked settlement in the northern West Bank, with about 140 competitors participating. The head of the far-right Samaria settlement council, Yossi Dagan, expressed his hope that holding such race in there will become a tradition for many more years, especially since Samaria, according to him is located in the heart of Israel historically and geographically, and it should be a cultural and tourist center, as it belongs to all Israelis.
In a reprehensible move, the occupation army organized a full-day tour last week for US army officers to the Al-Ibrahimi Mosque and other places in the West Bank city of Hebron, led by the office of Israeli Major General Yehuda Fuchs, was led by far-right settlement spokesman Noam Arnon.

List of Israeli Occupation and Settlers’ Assaults over the Last Week Documented by the National Bureau:

Jerusalem:

• Forcing Jerusalemite family to demolish their own house in the Sur Baher village under the pretext of nut having a building permit, otherwise, they they have to pay the demolition cost, which amounts to NIS 150,000.
• Notification of the seizure of a plot of land in the Al-Isawiya town, belonging to Ali Derbas, with an area of 400 meters, even though he owns ownership papers. Moreover,
• They stormed the land of the prisoner, Fadi Alyan, in Al-Isawiya, demanded the demolition of an iron and brick barn erected on it.
• Storming the Sheikh Jarrah Neighborhood under the guard of the occupation police.
• Demolishing a car wash in the Al-Isawiya town and a cemetery under construction in the Um Tuba village.
• forcing Jamal Muhammad Ali to demolish his commercial facility under construction, builton on an area of 150m2.

Hebron:

• Injuring 2 civilians in an attack carried out by armed settlers from the “Susya’ settlement in the Susiya village in Masafer Yatta. Distributed 3 demolition orders there, and a sheep-raising room, two water wells and two barracks belonging to Moh’d Ayoub Abu Sabha and Akram Sari Abu Sabha.
• Excavation works at the entrance of the Al-Ibrahimi Mosque under the protection of the occupation forces to complete the excavations that began several months ago in the outer courtyards of the Mosque to install an elevator to serve the settlers.
• Storming the village of Birin, south of Hebron, and raiding and searching a number of citizens’ homes, caused a state of terror and panic among children and women

Bethlehem:

• Orders to demolish and halting construction in 8 different places in the Nahaleen town, west of Bethlehem, in addition to a mosque and agricultural rooms in 8 separate places in the town.
• Demolishing retaining walls in the Al Walaja village on lands located in the “Khalat Al Hoor” area in the center of the village, owned by Jamil Ali Abu Hamdan, and another in the Sammak area, owned by Saleh Helmy Khalifa.
• Bulldozing agricultural land and uprooted dozens of olive and almond seedlings, demolished retaining walls and a water tank in the Battir town in the Qusair and Khimar area, and began razing agricultural lands estimated at an area of 40 dunums, and uprooting a number of olive and almond seedlings, belonging to citizens of the Asila and Aouina family
• Ramallah:
• handing over orders to demolish 2 livestock barns, each 50m2 in the gathering of “Al-Qebon area, near the village, otherwise the occupation authorities will demolish them.
• Theowing stones against citizen cars while passing near the “settlement of Beit Il” on the sight of the occupation forces, resulting in smashing a number of vehicles’ glass.

Nablus:

• Closing the entrance to the Al-Masodeia land near Burqa tow northwest of Nablus, with cement blocs.
• Storming an Islamic religious tombs in the Awarta town, protectd by the occupation army, and performed Talmudic rituals in 3 places.
• Closing the main road of the village of Al-Libban Al-Sharqeia, performed Talmudic prayers, and provocative rites, threatened to close the Girls Secondary School, and seize its building.
• Bulldozing the roads leading to Jebel Sabih in the town of Beta, and closing all terraces to prevent the arrival of young men and ambulances to the area.
• Notify to stop construction work of 2 buildings belonging to Adel Saleh Abu Helwan, Amad Abu Helwan, in the Beit Dajan.

Jenin:

• Throwing stones at cars and houses in the Silat Dahr town, resulting in the closure of the street.
• Order to demolish a house belonging to the family of the prisoner Mohammed Jaradat from Al-Sila AHarthiya, accused with participation in the process of killing a settler near the settlement of Homshi Muhash in 2005 between Jenin and Nablus weeks ago.

Qalqilia:

• Handing Faisal Mustafa Taha from the village of El-Nabi Elias, and Abdel Malek Fo’ad Rayan, from the Azzun town east of Qalqiliyah, orders to stop construction in their agricultural facilities, under the pretext of not having pemlts.